To reduce building costs, without lowering quality, by replacing the traditional method of placing materials with on-site, prefabricated modules, has been a concern for some time.
Existing prefabricated modules may be the size of a small home. However, building with this type of prefabricated modules, by placing them side-by-side and stacking them, causes different problems, such as the lack of stability in the event of side stress owing to earthquakes, wind or the settling or movement of the building. This means that at present, buildings made with these types of modules are made up to a maximum height of 3 storeys, or in other words, three modules.
There may also be small building errors in these modules, meaning that the side and horizontal surfaces may not be perfectly perpendicular. The accumulation of errors when stacking multiple modules could be fatal for the stability of the building.
Buildings currently made with this type of modules require expensive expansion joints, which apart from increasing the construction cost, also complicate building significantly.
These modules use prefabricated elements, such as walls made outside the factory and assembled frames, ready to be fitted with other elements at the building site, such as floors or ceilings. However, on-site work is still significant, as adjustment and assembly operations are considerable and difficult to solve.